Even as the UConn women’s basketball coaching staff was putting together one of the top five recruiting classes in the country, the sounds of discontent could be heard from the more vocal members of Husky Nation.

So much of UConn’s success over the last two seasons could be traced to the inside duo of 6-foot-5 Stefanie Dolson and 6-foot-4 Breanna Stewart. With Dolson wrapping up her career by leading the Huskies to a 40-0 record and second straight national title, it was only natural to wonder how her team would fare without the multi- faceted team leader there to take some of the pressure off of Stewart.

After receiving national letters of intent from perimeter players Sadie Edwards, Courtney Ekmark, Kia Nurse and Gabby Williams, all hopes for finding Dolson’s replacement centered on top prospect A’ja Wilson. When it became apparent that Wilson, who ultimately signed with South Carolina, wasn’t coming to Storrs, some wondered out loud why UConn coach Geno Auriemma and his staff couldn’t sign a player taller than 6 feet in the past two classes.

Well, with De’Janae Boykin committing to UConn on Sunday, the Huskies now happen to have commitments from a pair of forwards ranked among the top 10 recruits in the Class of 2015, and there’s a chance that Big East Freshman of the Year Natalie Butler, who finished fifth among Division I players in rebounding last season, could transfer to Connecticut.

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Suddenly it seems as if Auriemma and his staff can indeed attract the interest of top-flight inside players.

Boykin, a 6-foot-2 forward from Springdale, Maryland, averaged 21.1 points and 16.7 rebounds as a junior at Flowers High School. She shot 64 percent from field and posted six games with more than one 3-pointer. Boykin had four games with 20 points and 20 rebounds, including three in a four-game span.

She visited UConn twice in recent months, including taking an official visit in late April along with fellow highly-touted juniors Napheesa Collier, Haley Gorecki and Katie Lou Samuelson.

When Boykin returned from UConn, the feeling was that she would commit by July 1, but there was no concrete timeline. With Sunday being Boykin’s 17th birthday, she figured there would be no better time to make it official, so she informed coaches from North Carolina, Penn State, Virginia and Tennessee that she was committing to UConn.

“I wanted to commit over the summer, but I didn’t know when,” Boykin said. “Then I thought maybe my birthday would be the best time.”

With Dolson now a member of the WNBA’s Washington Mystics and Kiah Stokes set to graduate before Boykin plays her first collegiate game, she knows she will have a chance to make an immediate impact as a freshman.

“Anywhere I went I felt like I could help any program, but being able to help UConn would be the biggest one because they are losing Stefanie and they will be losing Kiah,” Boykin said. “I think it was the best place for me to go in there to learn and develop as a player.”

Boykin and Collier will get to know each other a little better before arriving at Storrs. Boykin said she is on a team with Collier competing in the upcoming U.S. 3x3 18 national tournament in Colorado Springs, Colo.